Mexicali pig rancher complains of Mexican army abuse while US Border Patrol observes

Mexicali - October 14, 2012 - A new case of abuse by Mexican soldiers was reported to this newspaper by the victim who had his property raided while he was beaten, manhandled, tortured and threatened with death.

All of this happened to José César Ramos Sandoval at his La Lomita ranch, located in colonia Centinela III, right next to the international border fence in the westernmost area of Mexicali, where a group of subjects arrived dressed in black civilian clothes, but with their faces covered with masks and carrying rifles and pistols.

The victim told this newspaper that last Wednesday afternoon he was working at his ranch along with his employees, Ismael García Paredes and Francisco Zúñiga Ruiz, who were feeding the pigs and tending to the pens, when the occupants of a tan Nissan stopped in front of the ranch gate asking for a bucket of water because, "the car was overheating."

But it was when they were opening the gate to give them water that they pushed it open and entered the private property. They went to where José César was and at gunpoint tried to take him and put him in the Nissan. As he had no idea what was going on, José César fought for his life, and while he was struggling he noticed a United States Border Patrol agent watching from the US side of the border.

For this reason, his aggresors opted to put him in a little cabin on the ranch and there they started to beat him at will.

They told the rancher he had to give them 9 pounds of cocaine and they would leave him in peace. But the pig rancher did not know what they were talking about, and the torture continued. He was beaten on the head with the butt of a pistol, then they blindfolded him and continued beating him until the commander arrived.

Then this commander arrived aboard a blue GMC Sierra four-door pick-up, according to what his employees told him later. With his hands handcuffed behind him they stood him up and demanded either the cocaine or the equivalent value in dollars.

As he did not give in, not because he did not want to, but because he did not have what they wanted, they threw him to the ground and kicked him all over his body. Then they put a towel over his nose and mouth and poured water on it, which caused a frightening sense of drowning and he thought he would die.

Suddenly the armed group detected something and their leader said, "let's go," they took off the handcuffs and left, leaving him so battered that he told his workers to take him to doctor. When he left for the doctor, he could see that his ranch was surrounded by soldiers, who immediately left behind the Nissan and GMC.

For this reason, the victim has filed a complaint with the Attorney General for the New Criminal Justice System, for the crimes of abuse of authority, compounded by being from members of a security body, which is filed as case 0202-2012-39200.

César Ramos said that the commander told him not to file a complaint, and if he did they would return to kill him.